When It All Falls Apart
by littlesunhikari
Summary: "I was confident I had the ability to see through other people's facades but they could never see through mine…" Haruhi is in her final year of pre-law but nothing is working out like she planned. Someone is trying to destroy her life and it's become way more than she can handle alone. Continuation Story
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer:** I don't own or have anything to do with the creation of Ouran High School Host Club. This is just me sharing my fantasies based on all those wonderful characters.

 **When It All Falls Apart**

Prologue

It's been three years since Haruhi had come home from America, three years since Tamaki had chosen to stay. His grandmother had been able to get Tamaki into the management program at MIT. It was one of the most prestigious universities in the world, the program would greatly benefit Tamaki as the future head of the Suoh family. His grandmother had actually begged him to do it. She was a proud woman always demanding her way, never asking, and she had begged him. She had even beseeched Haruhi to convince him to stay and go through with the program. And so he agreed. Haruhi couldn't afford to stay in America for university after she finished her one year of study abroad. She refused to go into debt over it, especially not when she had a full scholarship to Ouran University where she had always originally planned on going. She had refused both her father's and Tamaki's offers to help her pay for it. She knew it was too much of a financial burden for her father and she never wanted to be in debt to Tamaki again. This was her dream she had to make sure she saw it through but she also felt the need to do it on her own without their help.

She and Tamaki had argued at length about her having an overinflated sense of independence. He wanted to know why they just couldn't get married, then what was his would be hers anyways. But there was no way she would get married before she finished university. He was hurt by the fact that she still wouldn't let him take care of her, but eventually he begrudgingly accepted her need to earn her way on her own. It was just four years they could handle it.

But in the end they couldn't.

They'd had been through a lot to get where they were, they had a very strong bond. They were devoted to each other but life has way of messing with even the best laid plans. Two years into university Tamaki's father died very unexpectedly. It threw their whole world into chaos. Tamaki was devastated but he now had the whole Suoh Company resting on his shoulders so many lives depending on him. He returned to Japan for just a few days for the funeral, even then Haruhi wasn't allowed to spend hardly any time with him. He was always surrounded by advisors with mountains of decisions to make. They were always asking her to leave so she wouldn't be a distraction. Tamaki didn't fight them on it. He was barely a shadow of he was, so drawn into himself. All the light that always shined out of him so brightly seem snuffed. It broke her heart, and she wouldn't dare make things more stressful for him. So she stayed away. Then far too soon Tamaki was set to go back to America. End of term exams were just around the corner for Haruhi. He told her to stay in Japan for now and not jeopardize her studies just to keep him company, that he would be alright. It sort of hurt that he didn't need her to come, she just wanted to be able to be there for him. Still she did not want to add any more pressure on him so she did as he asked.

Life became a whirlwind for Tamaki with the company trying to juggle finishing university while stepping in to fill his father's place. The board members kept him running around the clock, he hardly ever had time to talk with Haruhi. Then communication with him came to a halt almost entirely six months after his father died with one final message on her voicemail. Tamaki explained he needed time to work through things and he just couldn't be sure what would happen in the future anymore. He asked her not to call or contact him. He had a lot of heavy decisions to make he would contact Haruhi when he figured some things out. Haruhi wasn't positive since the message was short and not entirely clear but she was fairly certain Tamaki had meant they were putting their relationship on hold. They were breaking up.

Two months later Lady Éclair Tonnerre showed up at Haruhi's door. She was a year older than Tamaki and had been attending university in America as well, at Harvard University studying Public Administration and International development. When Tamaki was a second year student in high school he had almost been forced into an arranged marriage with her made by their parents, which he narrowly escaped thanks to Haruhi. Not that he ever bore any ill will towards Éclair for it. She was already there when Haruhi had begun her exchange program with Harvard. Haruhi made quite a splash in her attendance, everyone was impressed that she was only a high school student but had still made it into the program. It garnered her a certain amount of respect even from Éclair. Even with their rocky past she and Haruhi were able to form a close friendship and eventually Éclair become friends with the other members of the host club including Tamaki. With Harvard only being mere miles from MIT she was able to continue her friendship with Tamaki even after the others returned to Japan.

Lady Éclair had come to convince Haruhi to come back to America with her. Tamaki was in pretty bad shape. The stress was getting to him but he wouldn't let anyone help. He was working himself to death, he hadn't even given himself time to grieve properly. She explained how she cared a great deal for Tamaki and was willing to do anything to make this easier on him. She figured if anyone one could set Tamaki strait, it was Haruhi. And for the first time in her life something was more important to Haruhi than achieving her dreams. What good was love if you didn't drop everything else to help the person when they needed you most? They were going to leave right away. They quickly secured her visa and plane tickets and as she was in line to board her flight the guards informed her that her visa had been revoked. No explanations were given. Éclair couldn't stay longer since she had to return to her studies as a senior year student. She promised to do her best to help her clear up this mess and to take care of Tamaki. She would keep Haruhi updated even when Tamaki wouldn't.

Shortly after that she did finally receive a message from Tamaki. It was just an innocuous email how his day had went. It was strange as though it hadn't been months since she had heard from him, but there was a glimmer of the old Tamaki in it, enough to bring her hope. So she emailed back in kind, just about how her day went. And slowly but surely they began to trade emails back and forth and it finally felt like she might be getting her Tamaki back.

But at the same time, the Suoh company board started in on her. Of course it was all without Tamaki's knowledge of it but for weeks they tried to buy her off with an inordinate amount of money saying she wasn't what the Suoh Company needed as the president of the company's wife. Haruhi figured they were the ones that had somehow blocked her visa the month prior. She didn't dare mention it to Tamaki knowing he still had far too much to worry about. Of course she refused their offers over and over and it seemed like finally the board had backed off. But just weeks later strange things started happening.

It was little things at first, someone calling her phone and then hanging up, vague random threatening letters at her apartment door, and she could swear someone was following her. But then she lost her job at the restaurant she had been working at for over two year. They were extremely apologetic, the owner's wife even cried. They said they just weren't able to afford to keep paying her, that business wasn't so good, but they would still give her a recommendation. Then she heard a week later they hired someone new to replace her. The first replacement job she found a grocer let her go after a week, simply saying she wasn't a fit for their store. It was very suspicious. Her saving were stretching thin it was making her nervous. She had finally been able to find a new job at a sweet little bakery but had a niggling feeling that it might not last.

Then suddenly things became much worse, a few weeks ago she was caught in the subway doors. The train almost dragged her down the platform as it moved away. Thankfully it had only caught her coat and she was able to wiggle out of it in time. It had felt as though someone had grabbed her to pull her back in the way of the door as she was walking out. Last week she also had almost been hit by falling pottery. It fell from a top floor window of her own four story apartment building. It would have likely killed her if it had hit her. And then just a couple days ago she narrowly missed being hit by a car, that time she knew someone had pushed her into the road. Even though it had been a crowded street she felt the deliberate hand on her back pushing her. She was still scuffed and sore from hitting the ground. This was becoming too serious, she wasn't sure what to do but she need to figure out why and soon. She had a bad feeling this was going to get worse.

 _Author's Note: Not sure how I feel about prologue's in general, not a great piece of literature right here, but with original storyline as well as all the fanfictions out there for Ouran I wanted to get us all on the same page. Better writers could do this without the info dump but here it is anyways. Let me know if after reading the first few chapters if you think it's completely unnecessary. NOW onward to the real story._


	2. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer:** I don't own or have anything to do with the creation of Ouran High School Host Club. This is just me sharing my fantasies based on all those wonderful characters.

 **When It All Falls Apart**

Chapter One

Bunkyo, Tokyo

Haruhi had been home five hours and she had barely sorted through any of the mess that had been made. She had come from the university to a ransacked apartment. Strangely they hadn't taken anything, but they had destroyed everything. The lock had been broken on the front door and even some of the windows were broken. Her landlord was going to freak, he was probably going to kick her out. She also had to call out of work this afternoon which meant less money this week. How was she going to pay for all this? She was exhausted and had no idea of what she was going to do. She wasn't even sure if it would be a good idea to call the police or not. It was getting later the sun would set soon and the winter wind coming in through the windows was only going to get worse. She had to take off her big thick coat, it was an old one of her dad's she had borrowed to replace the one that had been caught in the subway doors. It was just too big to work in even though the icy air was making it almost too cold to think. Her already injured hands from her accident a few days ago hurt even more now and her shoulder hurt badly enough she wanted to cry. She was beginning to think maybe she should have gone to the hospital. Her phone ringing shattered the silence of her wrecked apartment, startling her.

"Hello?" She answered a little shakily.

"Hey Haruhi we're hungry we're coming over for dinner." It was Hikaru.

"Wait, what? It's getting late and besides you guys have your own chef."

"But we haven't seen you, you're always too busy studying or working." That was Kaoru

"Besides we're already on the way over." Added Hikaru

"You guys can't just come over without asking first!" She shouted back

"Aww but we miss you. We don't like going this long without seeing you" Said Kaoru. Haruhi felt guilty it had been over a month and she missed them too. A month really was too long to go without seeing her best friends.

"My apartment's too messy I …. Uh ….haven 't had time to clean."

"Oh I doubt it's that bad, your place is always clean. We're here now anyways." Hikaru replied. Haruhi winced, maybe she could cut them off down stairs, she was on the second floor, and maybe she could convince them she wanted to eat out. Not that she could afford it but it was better than them coming in here.

"Uh…. hold up, Stop, you don't have to come up, I'll meet you down there. We can go out!" She scrambled to the door. She didn't want them to see this, it was embarrassing, it was…

"Too Late! Already here. Hey why was your door already open...?" Shouted Hikaru as the door burst open, phone still to his ear. Haruhi shrank back as his words cut off abruptly, shock emblazoned across his face. She cringed as Kaoru came up behind him breathing heavy.

"Dude why did you run so fast and why are you just standing…." He didn't finish his sentence as he stared into the ransacked apartment. Suddenly Haruhi felt like crying. She didn't hardly ever cry but now she could barely hold them back as the strain and fear of the last several months settled on her. Kaoru spoke first.

"What happened?" His voice was soft and quiet.

"I don't know, it was like this when I got home." She replied in barely maintained composure

"Who would do this to you?" Asked Hikaru, his voice was low, angry, and threatening. Haruhi wordlessly turned away from them to walk further into her apartment. They followed her, still in shock. Haruhi nervously began sorting things again needing to do something with her hands. She was cracking she could feel it.

"Haruhi, do you know who did this?" Asked Kaoru more gently than Hikaru had.

"I um don't know for sure, I mean I guess it could be anybody, maybe they were kids hoping to get lucky by finding valuable, or one those gang kids initiation things, I mean I don't have any proof it's who I think it was, it could be anybody, lots things have happened it probably not just one person so just because...just because, the notes and all those other things have happened at the same time doesn't mean they're connected." She was babbling she couldn't seem to stop the words coming out of her mouth.

"What other things?" Hikaru broke in sharply. She finally looked up at them, her eyes had filled with unshed tears. She had started shaking. Kaoru rushed over to her pulling her into her arms and she lost it. She just started sobbing into his arms. The brother's exchanged worried looks as they silently agreed on what to do.

Haruhi clung to Kaoru. It was all too much, everything over the last several months, from Tamaki's father's death, and not being able to talk to Tamaki, then him cutting her off entirely, to all the accidents and now this. She didn't recognize her own voice and could barely hear Hikaru over the harsh sounds of her crying as he talked on the phone.

"...Yea, as fast as you can, man I think they destroyed everything even the furniture. No… I'm pretty sure she hasn't reported anything yet...Just come on in when you get here. I checked the door the lock is broken, the windows are broken, and damn it's freezing in here, we can't let her stay here tonight… No I don't think she alright, she said other things have been happening, yea... someone's coming after her for some reason. She's crying really hard, I've never seen her like this….Oh man I didn't even think to check." Then he shouted at Kaoru. "Bro, see if she's been hurt." Then he went back to talking on the phone. "You think someone might have already attacked her. Damn! Why hasn't she said anything about all this to us…?" Hikaru continued talking on the phone as Kaoru began to try and calm Haruhi down. He pulled away from her slightly and took her face in his hands and spoke softly.

"Haruhi are you in any pain, did they hurt you anywhere?" he asked, it took a little while for Haruhi to calm down enough to speak.

"N-n-not from to…today." She stuttered. "I didn't get hurt this time, it' just my apartment." She continued. Hikaru had stopped talking but the phone was still to his ear, he had come to stand next to them now listening closely to Haruhi. Stark worry filled both of the boy's faces. Kaoru pressed her again.

"Have they hurt you some other time?" He managed to keep his voice calmer than he felt as he spoke to her as though he was trying to coax a jumpy frightened kitten.

"Well at first I didn't think it was connected that it was just bad luck …Originally it was just my job and then the letters, and now I can't be sure but I think someone pushed me in the road on purpose a couple days ago, a car almost hit me but then swerved in time. I felt the hand on my back, I landed badly and got a little scuffed up, I'm still a little sore but I don't think I got hurt that bad. Before that there was the flower pots that fell from upstairs last week but I didn't get hurt then; and I was caught in the subway doors a few weeks ago. It felt like someone grabbed and pulled me back in the way of the doors when I was leaving the train. I sort of wrenched my shoulder pulling out of my coat so the train wouldn't drag me. I lost my coat, so I've been wearing my dad's, it still hurts pretty bad."

"What the Hell!" Shouted Hikaru, it made Haruhi jump it was so loud. "Why haven't you told us any of this?" He shouted at her. Haruhi shrank back away from them and his accusing voice, she hated herself for feeling so weak but she couldn't help it. Kaoru caught her and pulled her back into his arms again.

"Back off Hikaru, I know you're just worried, I am too, but she's been through enough." Said Kaoru defensively. He rarely truly reprimanded his brother, they joked all the time, but this time he meant it. He glared angrily a Hikaru. Hikaru groaned at himself and turned away, sheepishly rubbing his neck. He really wasn't helping things "You're right. I'm sorry. Haruhi I'm sorry I didn't mean to yell at you. It's gonna be alright, we going to take care of you." He replied quietly now. Haruhi nodded at him but there were tears in her eyes again. She laid her head into his brother's chest letting him hold her. He ached as he watched her. Her clothes were worn and wrinkled from what had clearly been a long day, and her long hair was falling from its braid. She looked so frail and fragile. He took off his coat and tucked it around her. It really was freezing in here. He hated seeing her like this, Haruhi was always so strong, always the one giving comfort, hardly ever taking for herself. She always pushed back if he was a jerk but now it was like someone had broken her. He was so angry he could barely stand it, whoever was doing this was going to pay. It was times like this that made him angry with Tamaki, he should be here taking care of Haruhi, protecting her, not off on the other side of the planet. Then he remembered he'd actually still been on the phone. The other end of the line was silent.

"Well Kyoya hung up, I'll need to call him back." Said to Hikaru to Kaoru but then the door flew open with a bang. Instinctually Kaoru pulled Haruhi further away from the door and Hikaru placed himself in front of them, protecting them.

"HA-RU-CHAN" A loud higher pitched male voice called out and Hani bounded into the apartment with Mori close behind. The twins both blew out a breath of relief and relaxed.

"Oh Haru-Chan, we were so worried, Kyoya called us and we came over right away!" He rushed over to where Kaoru was holding her. He was no longer the small child like boy he was in high-school. He'd grown into more manly features and was now taller than Haruhi but just barely. He smiled brightly at Haruhi bringing hand to her shoulder patting her comfortingly. The tall imposing Mori immediately began searching around the apartment. He silently checked all the rooms and windows, then shook his head to Honey when he was done. He went back to the group to stand in front of Haruhi, frowning down at her in worry, his look more serious and severe than was even usual for him.

"Good Job Takashi. We're here to keep you safe Haru-chan." Said Honey with deceptive cheerfulness, the others didn't notice the dangerous look the two shared between one another just before. Mori stayed alert and on the lookout while Honey kept up his happy chatter, without missing a beat. "Everything's going to be okay, you won't have to worry anymore!" His upbeat personality was just what Haruhi needed to feel calm, it felt good to have all her friends around her again.

"Thanks guys, all of you, I hate to be such a bother, I'm sorry I've made you worry." She said as she moved out of Kaoru's arms. She wiped her tear stained cheeks and that's when they all noticed the nasty abrasions and cuts covering her hands. They all gasped and surprisingly it was Mori who reacted first. He took her hands into his own as he brought them up to inspect them. He had moved fast but he was still incredibly gentle, cradling them softly in his own.

"They need to be treated so they don't get infected. Your hands are freezing. You're shaking" his deep voice rumbled as he clasped his big hands over hers in attempt warm them up. The door burst open, once again setting everyone on the defensive. This time it was Mori pulling Haruhi into the protective shell of his arms as everyone else stood guard in front of them. Then relief filled the room, it was just Kyoya. He was in his typical high fashion three piece suit and an expensive business winter trench coat but had a very unusual disheveled look about him. He was actually out of breath having clearly run up to her apartment. It was rare for his stone cold calm to slip but he rushed in through the door. An older gentleman came in huffing behind him carrying a doctor's bag. The man just stared out in shock as he looked around the destroyed room but Kyoya continued over to the group without a single glance around. The twins and Honey let him pass. He surprised them all when the known Ice King pulled Haruhi straight out of Mori's arms and lifted Kaoru's coat off of her before looking all over her for injuries. He frowned deeply as he cradled her injured hands. He tossed the coat at the twins and then hugged her to his chest, his head coming to rest atop hers as he sighed in relief.

"I brought a Doctor in case it was bad, I couldn't understand what was happening over the phone since someone stopped talking." He said as he gave Hikaru a harsh look while holding on tightly to Haruhi.

"Yea sorry I sort of freaked out when Haruhi started telling us about all the other stuff." Said Hikaru sheepishly again.

"I guess it's understandable. But we can talk about all that later." He waved off dismissively, but giving the others a stern look for silence as he still held Haruhi close. Then peering down at Haruhi he spoke more gently than she had ever heard, even more than one his potential clients he was trying to woo into business.

"Haruhi will you please allow the Doctor to treat your hands and any other injuries you might have, I think I heard something about your shoulder over the phone?" He asked, then seeing she was clearly about to protest he cut her off, "It would make all of us feel better and we would be able to stop worrying." He explained. Haruhi looked around at all of them as they all nodded at her.

"Please Haru-Chan, okay?" Implored Honey.

"Alright" She replied. Kyoya motioned for the doctor who had finally stepped out of his shock to come over.

"This is Doctor Sasaki, my personal physician, he'll take excellent care of you." Said Kyoya as he gestured toward the older man.

"Yes don't worry young miss we'll get you all patched up, is there a room we can use for privacy?" Said the Doctor stepping forward.

"Haruhi's room is this way." Answered Kyoya who first glanced at Mori who nodded ok before he steered them to Haruhi's windowless room. He hadn't been by often; in fact he had purposely kept his distance, it was easier that way. He at least been there enough to know the basic floor plan of her apartment and that her room was likely the safest in the whole apartment.

"I'm sorry about the mess." Haruhi told the doctor nervously as they walked into her bedroom.

"From what I gather it's not even remotely your fault, so don't worry about a thing, let's just focus on making sure you're ok." replied the Doctor. Kyoya left them in the room closing the door as he went out. He walked back over to the guys, it had been a long time since they had all been together. Things changed after Tamaki left, but taking care of Haruhi was something that would never change. Kyoya was quiet for a moment, his face was darker probably then they had ever seen. He was clearly pulling back the control that he let slip.

"Alright, I have a team from our police force who is securing the building and the nearby area as we speak, and I'll have a cleanup crew here shortly, once the doctor checks Haruhi out I want her taken away from here. It's not safe and she shouldn't have to deal with this. I don't think she'll want to go to her father's home, from what I understand he has a new wife. And it's why Haruhi moved into her own place."

"Yea, she told us it was weird with them being all lovey dovey, she thought they'd need space and time to themselves." Said Hikaru.

"Haruhi will stay with us." added Kaoru as the twins looked at each other and nodded in agreement.

"Good, she will most likely be more comfortable staying with you two then the rest of us anyways." Replied Kyoya, though there was something about the way he said it made it clear it wasn't his first choice.

"I don't think she should be alone at all until we can catch this guy, what about her classes and work tomorrow? We have to go to our classes too and can't be with her all day" Said Kaoru worriedly.

"Mitsukuni and I will accompany her." said Mori as everyone was surprised that he had spoken up as he rarely said or suggested anything.

"Yes, we'll be her bodyguards." agreed Honey emphatically, both of their schedules were pretty free since they finished university, Honey had given up the position as the next head of house to his younger brother so the family mostly just charged him with staying out of trouble when he wasn't instructing karate and judo in the family dojo. And where Honey went Mori went, as it simply was just the way they were. Mori's family had served Honey's for more than a century but now even though they actually related by blood for two generations and no longer just servants Mori was still devoted to Honey. The cousins were rarely seen without each other.

"Well that certainly puts my mind at ease I know she's in good hands with both of you." Said Kyoya. There was likely no one stronger than those two especially when they worked as a team. "It looks like she's going to need a lot things replaced, even clothes and shoes but you know she won't like for us to help her" Said Kyoya as looked around the apartment.

"Don't worry about that, we have several designs we have been dying to try out on Haruhi, and the maids love when they get to dress her up. It's been awhile, it'll be fun, besides I think it will be a good added distraction for Haruhi if we convince her she's helping us with our school work." Said Kaoru

"And project revamp Haruhi's wardrobe has been in the works for a long time, we'll take care of all of it, she'll want for nothing." Said Hikaru

"An excellent idea, I'll have the cleanup crew salvage whatever they can for her but I imagine she's mostly going to be concerned about her textbooks and notes. If they can't be found in this mess I will order her a new set and have them sent to your house."

"What are we going to do about the fact that someone seems to be targeting her?" Asked Hikaru impatiently

"We find the bastard and destroy him. Let's keep the police out of it for now. It'll better for Haruhi if this doesn't end up in the news." Replied Kyoya simply his voice dark and menacing. Everyone nodded in agreement, they weren't going to let whoever was doing this get away with it.

"Should we let Tama-Chan know?" Asked Honey tentatively.

"We should probably leave that up to her." Said Kyoya

"It's been difficult to talk to him lately, I know even Haruhi has had trouble." Said Kaoru

"Well, we all know Tamaki is going through a lot right now." Said Kyoya said coldly he clearly didn't really sympathize with Tamaki.

"Still Tamaki should be here protecting Haruhi. It pisses me off, how could he leave her alone like this, she's too vulnerable." Shouted Hikaru

"I agree." Said Mori, he was angry as well with his arms crossed tightly across his chest. Everyone looked up at him in surprise again, it was so uncharacteristic of him to show any emotion at all. He continued in the unusual clipped irritation.

"I'm not happy with Tamaki either. At the very least he should have already assigned her a team of bodyguards. It's well known they are in a relationship, he's bound to gain enemies being a major company president. He has always been protective of Haruhi, I would have expected him to be keeping tabs on her, and already put a stop to these attacks. I never assumed Tamaki would leave her so open. If I had known sooner I would have pushed him to do so or guarded her myself." He explained.

"I'll admit I am surprised as well." Replied Kyoya, he paused as though thinking it through. "Still, we shouldn't interfere."

"Don't you think Tamaki would be upset we didn't tell him? You know Haruhi, she's not real good at depending on other, she might not know this is more than she can handle." Said Kaoru

"And that's why we will now be protecting her whether she likes it or not. Which is the most Tamaki would expect us to do, we can't interfere in their relationship and we can't go tattling on Haruhi to him. She would hate us for that, no matter how worried we are, and that would only make it more difficult for us to protect her."

"Fine you're right but I'm still pissed off at him." Said Hikaru, he had considered himself to be over his little crush on Haruhi for more than a couple years now, but outside of Kaoru, there still wasn't anyone more important to him than her.

"Don't worry Hikaru, we not going to let anything else happen to her." Said Honey, the usually cheerful young man was dead serious. There was a glint of steel, of anger, of death in his eyes now. Most people never saw it, but Honey was a deadly killing machine. He chose to live a happier lifestyle away from all the violence he was capable of and no one was usually ever the wiser. To the world he was just handsome, cute, silly, and fun to be around but he could tear the world asunder if he so wished it.

"Mitsukuni, do not forget your promise to the Prime Minister, you cannot break that even for Haruhi." Said Mori quietly. He was better at reading Honey's moods than anyone. The fact that Mori felt the need to caution him said more about Honey's actual frame of mind then even his own words. Honey was on edge and likely very close to losing it.

"I merely promised not to make any public spectacles of myself, no one will ever see this coming, and I can make sure that it's never known that it was me." Replied Honey. Even the group rarely saw Honey like this. It was easy to forget how dangerous he was. The door to Haruhi's room opened and everyone quieted and turned to look. She came out slowly and hesitantly, visibly both of her hands were bandaged and her left shoulder was secured in a sling. The Doctor followed out behind.

"Alright boys, the young miss is going to need a quite a bit of help this next few weeks, can I assume you already have a plan or do I need to be contacting her family?" Asked the Doctor. Haruhi suddenly looked so stricken at the thought of the doctor contacting her dad it was almost comical.

"I'm sure I'll be fine you don't need to contact…." She started out in a panicked voice, Kyoya interrupted her.

"Yes, the Hitachiin brother have offered their home, with their staff she'll have plenty of help there."

"You guys don't have to do that." Said Haruhi, her face flushing in embarrassment.

"Young Miss, I am going to insist you not stay by yourself, and I don't think it is a good idea to stay here for now anyways, you need to rest or it will take even longer for you to heal, and you might even re-injure yourself, I doubt you would be able to rest in this mess at all, or are you not planning on following the instructions I have given you." He scolded gently. Haruhi flushed even more on being called out, she already knew she wouldn't be able to rest and leave her disaster of an apartment alone as the doctor instructed if she stayed by herself so she hadn't planned on following through.

"Hmmm that's what I thought." Continued the doctor knowingly. "No one will think less of you for accepting help when it's offered, and from what I understand all of these boys consider you family, you would be worrying them if you do not make the effort to take care of yourself properly even if that means you have to let them be the ones to do it." He said softly. Properly chagrined Haruhi nodded.

"Alright, I guess if they don't mind I can stay with Hikaru and Kaoru for now." She replied.

"Great! This will be awesome, it just be like old times." Said Kaoru as he bounded over to her and ushered her closer to the group again.

"Now Young Miss, I also still recommend you contact your family, they would be quite upset if they found out about this later rather than sooner." Broke in the doctor once again.

"Will you call your father or shall I?" Added Kyoya pointedly. There would be no arguing on this one, one way or another her dad would find out. Her face dropped as she was apparently struggling with the decision. She didn't think she could bear having that initial conversation with him. He was quite overprotective, it was hard enough getting him to be okay with her moving out. But more than that she knew this would hurt him. It took him more than ten years to move on when her mother died. He wouldn't be able to bear losing his only child, and whether she wished to believe it or not that could have very well happened this past month. Kyoya noting her distress as her eyes began to tear up, came over to her. He place a gentle hand on her cheek and then raised her chin to face him.

"Hey, it's alright Haruhi, let me take care of this for you. I'll talk to Ranka, I'll explain it in a way that won't cause him to overly worry." He said softly, gently caressing her cheek and wiping away a tear. "Why don't you go ahead and let Hikaru and Kaoru take you to their house, you need to rest and today has been long enough I'm sure." He said, Haruhi nodded in agreement, actually relieved, but then she remembered that all she owned was destroyed even her clothes. Kyoya released her and she turned to the twins.

"I… don't think I have any clothes I can pack now, do you think we could stop by a store on the way?" She asked hesitantly, this month's budget had certainly gone out the window, she wasn't sure how she would pay for all of it especially the damages.

"Don't worry 'bout a thing, we've already got it all figured out, in a way you'll actually be a big help to us. And we were planning on asking you tonight anyways." Said a nonchalant Hikaru as both he Kaoru surrounded her and began to lead a slightly bewildered Haruhi towards the door.

"My coat, I'll just grab it and we can go." Said as she moved away from them to search for her coat. "I know it's here somewhere." As she started to dig through pile of stuff. Kyoya spied an old worn out coat that had seen better day but was still in good condition compared to the rest of her belongings and figured it must be the one she wore home. He stood in front of it blocking it from her sight and began to slip off his own coat.

"Here just wear mine, it won't matter the sleeves are too long since you can't put your arm in it anyway." He said placing it on her shoulders pulling it snugly around her. It dwarfed her completely the coat falling a few centimeters above the tops of her shoes so it wasn't going to drag along the ground. It looked ridiculous but it somehow felt like a relief to take care of her in this small way. "Besides mine will keep you warmer." He said quietly. Haruhi looked confused as she stared up at him but she just nodded and accepted it quietly. Kyoya couldn't resist the urge to wipe away the tears that still stained her cheeks. He felt an unfamiliar burning in his chest, he didn't want to let her out of his sight. He turned her back to the boys and mouthed silently from behind her "new coat" Hikaru gave a short nod of understanding while Haruhi was none the wiser.

"I'll send instructions and her prescriptions to your house, so your staff will know what to do." Said the Doctor to the twins. The boys agreed giving their information to the man then taking Haruhi from Kyoya and continued outside with her before she could argue. Kyoya watched them intently till the door closed.

"Should we follow?" Asked Honey to Kyoya breaking him out of his revere.

"My family's police force will escort them, and keep watch tonight. They will be safe." Explained Kyoya.

"Thank-you Sensei for your services tonight, they are invaluable as always, and I knew you would more likely be able to convince Haruhi of what she should do than I." Stated Kyoya as he bowed to the Doctor.

"Yes of course, I'm always here if you need me. This is nasty situation, this is more than just someone trying to scare her. I had her explain everything to me, it's obvious someone wants that little girl dead. I wouldn't say it's a real pro, it's too messy and they've clearly failed, still she could have easily died. I wouldn't leave her alone right now if I were you. It eases my mind that she has someone like you to take care of her. She is a very sweet young woman, I can't fathom why anyone would want to hurt her. Her injuries are not too serious, but they most certainly could have been. Her shoulder has some ligament damage. She definitely needs rest to heal. If it's not improving in a week, I'll send her to get an MRI, and we'll go from there. Though I am more worried about the psychological, she doesn't not appear to be sleeping enough, she might just be merely too stressed to fall asleep, or she might be too afraid and I wouldn't be surprised if she was having nightmares. We can always try a sleep aid but I like to avoid that whenever possible. Making her feel safe will go a long way in helping her recover." Explained the Doctor.

"We will certainly try our best." Replied Kyoya.

"Oh I know, I know, you are a good man Ootori-san. Now I should head home to the Mrs. She was quite worried when I left in a rush. I'll be checking in on the young miss in another week, but don't hesitate to call if she needs me before then." He said with a bow and turned to leave the apartment.

"Well, what's the plan?" Asked Honey since they three were alone, he had totally dropped the facade of cuteness, looking more serious than ever. "I think we should keep Hikaru and Kaoru out of the line of fire as much as possible as well." He added.

"I agree." Said Kyoya. Honey, Mori, and Kyoya had dealt with the more dangerous and harsh realities of the world in ways the rest of the group, even Haruhi had never even seen. Even though Haruhi, had a harder life being middle class, and losing her mother so young, her life was still quite sheltered. Before now she had never had to experience just how lethal and evil it could be. What power, greed, and desperation could do to people? The same was true for the others, though Kyoya suspected that Tamaki was never as ignorant as he acted.

He was fairly certain that Tamaki was aware of that darker side to life and was just instead chose to fight against it with everything he had determined to bring joy and beauty to the world. In fact knowing it was probably why he was so determined. In a way it made him as innocent as a newborn babe. But becoming the head of a first rate international company had a way of opening your eyes like nothing else could. It shattered any illusions that the world was good, Kyoya knew that from personal experience, when he had acquired his father's company in a hostile takeover. He knew this had to be difficult for Tamaki, he wasn't really made for dealing with the cut throat business industry. If his father had been able to ease him into it, it probably wouldn't have been so bad. But to have greedy blood sucking board members come at you in full force and you with no experience would be nothing short of a nightmare. Tamaki would certainly understand just how bad it could be now. But the twins even though had matured they will still quite shut up in their own little world, but artists tended to be that way so he doubted they would ever change. They would have to protect those two as well.

"We'll hunt down the bastard ourselves." Said Kyoya calmly. "We'll instruct the twins that their job is to keep Haruhi occupied and to keep an eye on her. They'll agree because those two will feel that it's more important to be with her, then researching for clues. I'm sure they'll feel a little on edge but they will never be in any real danger, I'll leave some of our police force with them. They'll be out of sight but close by at all times." He stated.

"Sounds good to me." Grunted Mori

"Do you have any suspects already?" Asked Honey

"I wouldn't be me if I didn't, but with what little I have to go on right now the only one that makes sense is the Suoh Company." replied Kyoya. Both Mori and Honey mouth dropped in surprise.

"You can't mean Tama-Chan? No way!" Honey Exclaimed

"No, no not Tamaki but the Company, or rather the board, I suspect they might be trying to push Tamaki to consider a more beneficial marriage. In fact I think it's why he's been out of touch lately, he's probably been trying to protect Haruhi from it. My best guess is that they have been unsuccessful in changing his mind so they decided to take more direct route. The company has been unstable since Director Suoh's death, I imagine members of the board are letting their fear get the best of them and they have become reckless. We need to find out just how many of them are involved. But I'm not willing to rule out other possibilities just yet that it is still possible someone else may be targeting her."

"Then shouldn't we really talk to Tama-chan." Asked Honey again as he had asked earlier.

"No, not at least until we have solid proof. If it is truly his companies doing, we'll take it to him first and let him decide what he wants to do."

"And what if he doesn't take care of it?" Asked Mori darkly, "It's much more difficult to deal with such things if he's personally invested, depending how far the corruption goes he might have to dismantle the entire company. Even the best of men have trouble with that."

"I doubt Tamaki will let them get away with it, but if it ever comes to it we will destroy them ourselves if we have too." Answered Kyoya, Mori nodded approvingly.

"I'm sure Tama-Chan wouldn't let them get away with this." Said a more positive Honey whose mood seemed have lightened.

"I'm letting you both know now that I certainly won't, we are lucky she is not already dead, it's a miracle she's survived this much. The Sensei was right, she's family to me, and I won't let them get another chance to hurt her, and they will pay for what they have already done. And something is off in this apartment I can feel it, someone is out there watching us, I know it. I think we should convince Haruhi to move somewhere else, unless we can actually convince her to stay with Hikaru and Kaoru until this is all over." Said Mori surprising the other two with his determinations. Even Honey seemed shocked at Mori being so open. Kyoya smiled ruefully at Mori.

"Well you certainly are chatty tonight Mori. And I got the feeling you weren't all that happy with me when I pulled her out of your arms earlier either, In fact I think you were holding yourself back, just so you didn't end up taking a swing at me in front of her." Replied Kyoya riley. Mori blushed.

"I'm not saying I'm in love with her, like everyone else is." Replied Mori, as he glared at Kyoya in a knowing look. "...Because I'm not, she's only …. like a sister to me as Mitsukuni is a brother. You're Supposed to take care of your family...I just took the opportunity to shield her from whomever was watching. I had her covered, you left her wide open. I'm just trying to keep her safe..." He explained still blushing as he rubbed hand across the back of his neck trying to sound convincing.

"Aww Takashi!" Shouted Honey as he gave his big cousin a nudge. "It's okay, I think we've all liked Haruhi at some time or another." He said, Mori just looked away not acknowledging Honey's comment but his face was still red.

"All that aside, I'll have Haruhi's class schedule to you within the hour, now I'm sure her professors wouldn't just appreciate you barging into their classes, but I think its best you not leave her side." Explained Kyoya putting them back on track.

"Don't worry, I can sort that out." Said Honey confidently.

"Good, I'll start quietly investigating the Suoh Company, and you guys keep a look out for whoever they are paying to stalk Haruhi, see if you can get her to tell you more about what's been going on so it might give us some more clues." Said Kyoya, the others nodded back. A knock sounded out the door. He knew it had to be one of his police force since he had told them to let no one else through so he called for them to enter.

"The Cleaning Crew is here Ootori-San." Said the officer.

"Excellent, send them in." Replied Kyoya

"Well, will we be seeing you tomorrow?" Asked Mori.

"Probably. Hopefully I'll have news." Said Kyoya

"See you then, we have plans to set up for tomorrow, let us know if anything changes." Replied Mori and the two headed out of Haruhi's apartment. The cleaning crew came in after them and Kyoya stepped aside to let them do their job. The whole apartment really was a disaster. He was probably going to have to pay off the landlord even if he did pay for all the repairs as well. He could feel his rage boiling just below the surface. It had been a long time since he had felt so much, years even. He was going to nail this bastard to the wall for what he had done. His heart had almost stopped when Hikaru had told him Haruhi's apartment had been destroyed. Then he had almost panicked as he could barely make out her explaining the other things that had happened to her over the phone. He dropped everything to come as fast as he could just to make sure she was alright. He wasn't sure he had ever felt so worried. He had enough clarity to call his physician to meet him there and it certainly made him feel better to have her checked out. He watched the crew begin to sort through items. It terrified him that he could have just as easily been holding a dead Haruhi tonight. His phone rang and he took one last look at the wreckage before walking out to answer it.

"Hello?" He answered.

"Is She Safe?" A harsh whisper demanded on the other side. It was Tamaki. It startled Kyoya he almost didn't know what to say. And suddenly he felt angry.

"What the hell is going on Tamaki?" He replied heatedly

"Is she safe?" Tamaki begged in a sob this time.

"Yes…" Kyoya sighed wearily. "Now tell me what is happening."

"I'm getting married tomorrow, to Lady Éclair, it's the only way." He said quietly

"What the hell? What about Haruhi?" Kyoya demanded.

"I can't tell her, but she'll find out when it hits the news, you have to be there for her."

"What! How can you do this to her? We can fix this, whatever it is. You don't have to..." Kyoya was shouting now but Tamaki broke in.

"Not this time Kyoya, this is the only way." He said.

"Do you even know what's been happening to her? She's been through hell and it's most likely your fault. You're a real asshole you know that." Kyoya replied angrily. He rarely lowered himself to crude language. He didn't think he could be angrier than he already was but Tamaki had just proved him wrong.

"I know…" He replied softly

"Why?" Kyoya demanded once again

"I can't tell you, I shouldn't even been talking to you right now." Said Tamaki

"Damn it, Tamaki that's not good enough...I'm having to go around cleaning up your mess I deserve to know." Said Kyoya

"Now we both know that's not why you're angry." Said Tamaki

"You're going to break her. How can you live with yourself? What happened to you? The Tamaki I know would never do this, would never hurt Haruhi like this." He said clearly disgusted with Tamaki.

"YOU don't get it! Damn it, here..." Answered Tamaki his voice breaking. Kyoya's phone beeped for a new message; it was a picture. Kyoya's heart froze solid ice splintering through his veins, his throat closing tight. He could hardly breathe, his hand now clutching his chest at the deep physical ache that had manifested itself there. Someone had taken a picture of Haruhi in what looked like was the crosshairs of a sniper. It was in her apartment, her same clothes, even her hair was same, sometime before they had gotten there today, right through her broken windows. Damn, Mori had been right when he said someone was watching. The rage boiled over.

"The picture came with the suggestion I cut Haruhi off cleanly and completely or else. Marrying Éclair should satisfy them. It's the only way, I couldn't live with myself if…" Tamaki tried to explain but Kyoya exploded

"Alright I get it. Now you get this, stay the hell away from her! No contact of any kind. If you're really going to do this, if you're the reason she's in danger, then you walk away completely. Nothing from this moment on, no email, no messages no phone calls. Nothing from Éclair either both of you stay away from her. Do we understand each other?" Answered Kyoya his dark anger seeping through his tone.

"Yes I get it…"Tamaki sighed without arguing.

"Who sent this to you?" Kyoya demanded.

"It must be from a burner phone I already checked the number, nothing, I don't know which one it is yet, but they've got to be from the company board. They wouldn't get their own hands dirty though so they've had to have hired someone."

"Why haven't you done anything?" He said

"I've tried Kyoya I really have but now it's too dangerous, I can't do enough, I don't even know who I can trust anymore, I can't protect her, I can't….I don't want this, I don't…. You know I love Haruhi more than the world, I even threatened to walk away but this was their answer, what am I supposed to do, the only thing I can do now is to give in and cut her off, and hope that will be enough for them to leave her alone. What kind of man would I be if I risked her life just so I could keep her? They haven't given me a choice I'll lose her either way, at least this way it might keep her alive." Explained Tamaki in frustration.

"There is no going back from this Tamaki. I'm not going to let them and I won't let you jerk her around. I'm not go to let you break her only to come back after we catch this bastard. It wouldn't be fair to her or Éclair. She won't be yours anymore, never again and I won't be holding back anymore. She won't need you to come back." Kyoya replied wanting to be certain Tamaki understood.

"I know… The news... will probably announce my marriage by tomorrow night, please don't let her be alone... Take care of her." He answered his own voice broken.

"I will." Kyoya said.

"I'm sorry." Added Tamaki sadly.

"I know." Said Kyoya and he hung up.


	3. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer:** I don't own or have anything to do with the creation of Ouran High School Host Club. This is just me sharing my fantasies based on all those wonderful characters.

 **When It All Falls Apart**

Chapter 2

When Haruhi awoke the next morning finding herself in a huge bed and a room bigger than her whole apartment she almost didn't know what to do with herself. She had always felt this way whenever she had gone on vacation with the guys. The servants, being waited on hand and foot, and the opulent open luxurious surroundings, she just couldn't help feeling like she was overstepping herself. When she was just one of the guys, and no one knew she was really a girl, no really seemed to care that much that someone as low-standing as herself was hanging out with heirs of elite first class companies. But now it was different she could feel their eyes on her when she was together with the guys or whenever she was with Tamaki. They never said anything to her directly, but she had caught wind of the rumors and whispers, they were all judging her. Some of it was pretty awful, questioning her character, her morality, and whether or not she was sleeping with them, but most of the time it was just the disdain for her lowly position. Obviously this mostly came from other women who were just jealous. They had made it difficult for her to have friends outside of those she had gone to high school with. She had at least made a good enough impression at Ouran High School that most of the people still like her even after they found out.

Ouran University was different, students came from all over Japan and from around the world. It was a much larger pool of people but it was still almost exclusive upper class rich trust fund babies. Her freshman year there was even a group of students that tried to have expelled because she was not Ouran University caliber. It was as though they thought her attendance somehow brought down their own social standing. If it hadn't been for her close relationship the Tamaki's father they might have succeeded despite her being the top of the class. It had been a rocky start especially with Tamaki halfway around the world. She hadn't realized how much she had come to rely on him in high school, until she was on her own again.

Mori and Honey were the ones who kept her company that first year and the next as they were also OU students. Hikaru and Kaoru had gone to a design school instead to follow in their mother's footsteps into the fashion world. They were actually quite good even if it did get annoying that they kept trying to use her as their model. But they always managed to show up at her place every other day or so, to drag her away from her homework. Kyoya also attended OU but Haruhi only ever saw him occasionally, he had become incredibly busy since taking over his father's company when he was only a second year high school student. She had no doubt he was keeping tabs on her though, it was just what Kyoya did. Last night had been quite a surprise for her. Kyoya behavior was odd by any standards. He had never been one to lavish affection on her like the others guys, he usually kept a careful distance from her. Although she noticed he seemed to like goading Tamaki by sometimes placing himself between the two of them for some reason.

She had managed to make other friends at OU, well two friends, sisters actually. Naomi and Eri Wakahisa. Naomi was the same year as Haruhi while Eri was one year younger. But they were very close to one another and Haruhi rarely saw them apart. They reminded her a lot of Hikaru and Kaoru and it felt so natural to be with them. Naomi was also a law student along with Haruhi, though she was specializing in business law for the sake of her family's company while Haruhi was heading toward criminal law and prosecution. Eri was a musical prodigy, and as far as Haruhi could tell, Eri could play any instrument she got her hands on.

Her new job had also afforded her two new friends. After the debacle with her old job she managed to find a job in a locally owned pastry shop. It was owned by Akemi Ito and Momo Ueda and she had been working for them for over two months now. The two women were five years older and immediately took to Haruhi treating her like a little sister. Akemi was tall, strong, and very serious about her work as a dessert chef, she was always experimenting with new flavors and styles. Momo on the other hand was a short bombshell, whimsical and excitable, but excellent cake decorator. Her work was stunning and Haruhi always felt it was too beautiful to eat. The two opened their own shop right out of college with their own money they had been saving up together since middle school. Haruhi admired them both, they had worked very hard to create their business and were doing quite well. Haruhi was their only worker and she had felt bad about calling out of work. But when she had said her apartment had been broken into they had both freaked it was all she could do just to keep them from rushing over. She had managed to convince them it wasn't a big deal that she would see them and explain everything her next shift.

She stared down at her cell phone she was going to have to call them to reassure them this morning before her classes, they had left five messages on her phone last night. She had been so worn out she didn't even hear her phone ring when she went to sleep. It was still really early, only five-thirty in the morning, not even dawn, but according to Momo's last message when she called just after midnight she was already panicking, so she figured it would better to go ahead and call.

"Haruhi! Is that you? Are you alright?" shouted Momo causing Haruhi to wince and pull the phone away from her ear. "Akemi its Haruhi!" Momo shouted again.

"Haruhi you scared half to death you wouldn't answer your phone." Said Momo

"Sorry Momo, I didn't mean to worry you, I fell asleep early, but I'm fine. I promise." Replied Haruhi.

"Were going to try to get you come to our place, we decided you shouldn't have let you stay in your apartment last night. After all, what if they came back? You should come and sleep at our place tonight at least until the police catch the guy." Momo implored.

"Well… actually a couple of my friends from school stopped by and I ended up staying with them…." She said hesitantly. She had told them a little about the twins and the other guys but not much. She hadn't even told them about Tamaki. Well that's was hard to talk about to anyone even the guys especially since she was fairly sure there wasn't a "her and Tamaki" anymore.

"Oooh, is it those boys you talked about!" Momo squealed seeming to go back to her happy self now that she had assured herself Haruhi was alright."

"Uh, yes, The twins stopped by for dinner, and they called others about my apartment, they all kinda pushed me into staying here with the twins or they were going to make go back to my dad's." said Haruhi

"Good for them, I would have been angry if they let you stay there." Added in Akemi.

"They're going to take care of it all so don't worry anymore I'm fine." Said Haruhi

"Good, so did a lot of your stuff get stolen?" Asked Akemi

"Uh…" Haruhi hesitated not sure how much to say she really didn't want them to worry. "Well I'm not sure yet... they kinda made a big mess so it's kinda hard to tell. But the guys said they would help sort through everything, you don't have to worry." She said trying to sound positive.

"Oh sweetie, it's really bad, isn't it?" Said Momo sadly. Haruhi gave in, she was just too tired to lie.

"Everything. I'm not even sure they took anything but I don't think I have anything worth saving left at all either." She said quietly it was the first time she had acknowledged it out loud..

"Oh Haruhi." Cried Akemi sympathetically. "What can we bring you? Clothes, food, pots and pans, blankets, we can bring you whatever you need, you just let us know." Added in Akemi,

"Thanks I really appreciate it, I think I'm okay for now, I won't know it really know anything until I get back home." Said Haruhi.

"Well I'm too tall and Momo's too short for you to fit in our clothes...hmm maybe if it wasn't so cold could you could where some of our dresses, whatever, but we can figure something out."

"Well, I have feeling Hikaru and Kaoru have been waiting for a chance to redo my wardrobe. They took my measurements and everything last night, said they we just going to have a few basics brought over for me but those guys never do anything halfway so..." Said Haruhi a little begrudgingly, she knew she should be appreciative, but they always went overboard and what they picked out was never really her style.

"Haruhi, just enjoy it I know you hardly ever do anything nice for yourself." Said Momo, "I know! You should give us a fashion show, I love love love the Hitachiin fashion line, too bad I can never afford any of it, I bet they'll give a bunch of great stuff, I want to see it all, this is so so exciting! She squealed and Haruhi just sighed.

"Well I'll see you guys after I get out of classes today okay, I get there early to make up for yesterday." Said Haruhi

"You don't have to do that, you've probably have tons to figure out today now. Don't worry about us we can handle it." Said Akemi

"I was thinking there's probably a lot that didn't get done and I don't want it to pile up so don't worry I'll be there." said Haruhi, Akemi and Momo were very talented but were also a little scatterbrained. Their success was all because of their fantastic desserts considering neither one of them had much a head for business. Everything was running much smoother with Haruhi's help with the accounting and the ordering. Momo was really bad about double ordering ingredients but now that Haruhi had organized their pantry everything was so easy to find. They now felt they would be lost without her.

"...yea, there's a bit, well... maybe a lot." Replied Akemi sheepishly

"Sorry again that I wasn't there to help. I'll be there by noon. Okay?" Said Haruhi

"Fine, but only because we'll feel better if we get to see you." Added Momo. They said their goodbyes and as Haruhi hung up there was a knock at the door.

"Miss Fujioka are you awake?" Called out a maid from the other side of the door.

"Oh yes?" Haruhi answered back.

"May I come in, I have some of clothes that the young masters sent for you."

"Ah just a moment…." Haruhi squeaked as she jumped out of bed. She was in only a nightgown. Simple white and modest at least but she wasn't used to receiving strangers in her nightgown. She winced as she had forgotten about not jostling her shoulder. Tears stung her eyes, it was hurting a lot worse this morning. As the pain eased off she tested it out and could barely move it. Well it looked like she would probably need help getting dressed anyways.

"No need to fret becoming presentable for me," Called the maid as she came in through door anyways. "Besides I've been given very specific instruction to not let you over do it with you shoulder? Let me just put these away and then I'll help you get dressed. The maid bustled in pushing a cart of full clothes and shoes. An older woman, Haruhi didn't think she had met her before. She watched as the woman whirled around honestly not really surprised at the amount of clothes.

"Alright young miss, let's get you out of that nightgown and into some fresh undergarments and the boys picked out what they would like you to wear today, so let's give it a try and see if you like it, if you don't they can get over it and we'll just try something else." Haruhi smiled at that, this was probably the first Hitachiin maid that was on her side.

Haruhi had never been more embarrassed in her life. She made her way down the stairs for breakfast her cheeks still heated. She was flushed through the whole process, she hadn't need help putting on her own underwear since before elementary school. She was also slightly embarrassed at the thought that the twins had probably picked out her underwear. But considering it had still hurt to move even with the maid's help it would have been difficult on her own. Everything the twins had ever put her in looked fantastic on her but it was all skirts, frills, and heels; ultra girly and just not her. But when the maid brought the outfit the twins suggested she wear today it was actually fairly simple, she actually liked it.

The skinny jeans were mostly likely designer and too expensive, but fit her like a glove without clinging. They felt very comfortable and flexible. She genuinely appreciated the twin's effort in this as she knew they were not fond of jeans in general. The soft sweater felt heavenly. Nothing fancy just a greyish purple crew cut sweater. She didn't even know sweater this soft existed. Even the brown leather knee boots where simple flats that were incredibly comfortable. Over all she really liked it and secretly she had to admit, the super soft lilac matching silk bra and panties had made her feel pretty as well. Still it was probably the last time she would let the twins buy her underwear. It was just too weird, she could only hope they didn't actually pick it all out themselves. The maid had even helped her do her hair, just soft relaxed curls pulled to the side with a simple slip, and some light tasteful make-up. It was more girly then she was used to but she liked feeling so feminine without being super froo-froo girly. Best of all no pink. The twins were too fond of pink and she just felt like she didn't belong in it.

She didn't spend much on clothes, and usually only bought very functional durable pieces but this was nice. She hadn't let the twins dress since high school, but now she couldn't deny their taste had certainly improved. The only items that clashed was the fresh bandages on her hands, her wrists and the arm sling. She was just going to go without the sling for class and work. The bandages on her hands were bad enough, but the sling was going to make everyone ask questions. Then the maid refused to let her out of the room without it, if she didn't want to be late so she didn't have a choice. It helped immensely to have the pressure taken off her shoulder though so clearly doctor was correct on his assessment of needing to rest it. At least it was her left and she could still use her right. She actually felt better than she had in days, probably because she actually slept last night. She had so much trouble sleeping lately. She couldn't deny she was more relaxed here than she was at home.

She entered the breakfast room where Hikaru, Kaoru, Mori, and Honey were already sitting and eating, they seemed to be having a very intense conversation but stopped as soon as the saw her. There was a collective gasp as the took in her appearance.

"You look so pretty Haru-Chan!" Called out Honey

"Beautiful." Said Mori quietly, his cheeks slightly reddened but he frowned deeply as his eyes landed on her sling and bandages. Haruhi was surprised by how much her injuries seemed to bother him. She hadn't failed to notice the change in his behavior. Mori was a great friend and they were closer than when they were in high school, but she hadn't realized he cared so much.

"Do you like it?" Asked Hikaru hesitantly

"We tried to go for a look that suited your personality more than our usual fare." Said Kaoru, Haruhi nodded with a big smile cause Hikaru to blush. He turned away and cleared his voice

"Well, eat breakfast, Mori and Honey are gonna take you to your classes." Said Hikaru gruffly as he looked down back at his breakfast.

"Oh? Well, they don't have too…" Said Hikaru a little surprised, she sat down at the table where Kaoru was holding out a chair for in between the two of them. He sat down and began serving her food placing it on her plate for her. Hikaru did the same, leaving her with a lot of food on her plate but she wasn't about to complain, it all looked fantastic.

'Well it's not like you can walk from here Haru-Chan, this is much further than your apartment is from the school. Don't worry, we only brought Mori's car and not the family limo, I know you hate making a scene" Said Honey reassuringly, Mori nodded along but he still kept his head down and focused on his food.

"Ok, then thank-you." Said Haruhi with a smile. They were right, she certainly didn't own a car, and she didn't even know how to drive, it's not like she could turn them down. She turned to eat her breakfast as she listened to the twins chatter about an upcoming event for their school. Honey smiled back but watched her intently. She was giving in right now but he knew she wouldn't to everything. He and Mori had decided it would be better to not tell her too much at a time. They would wait to tell her that they were staying with her through all her classes until after they were already in her classroom. They had in fact already cleared it with her professors. They had all been excited to have the famous prodigies Mitsukuni Haninozuka and Takashi Morinozuka from one of Japan's leading families audit their classes. And the University didn't care since they were paying for it.

As they finished eating Kaoru called for the maid to bring their coats and school bags. Haruhi was surprised when a maid presented her with a long brown wool winter trench coat and a leather satchel. She looked in the bag first, new copies of the books she needed for today were already in there along with new work books and notepads. She just stared down in amazement at it.

"Hurry up or you're going to be late" Admonished Hikaru. Haruhi looked up at him still surprised

"How?" Was all she said.

"Oh your books?" He asked as he looked in the bag, "Kyoya got them for you and had Honey and Mori bring it this morning, He said that they hadn't been able to salvage any of your books and your notes are in pretty bad shape, but he's got them all so you can go back through them and maybe redo your notes." He finished. Haruhi felt her eyes begin to tear up again though she wasn't sure if they were happy or sad. Probably both. It was going to be a pain to redo everything all over again but it was unusually kind of Kyoya to go through so much trouble for her.

"Here" said Hikaru as he took the bag from her and gave it to Mori, and then taking her coat from the maid, he helped her put it on. With her injured arm tucked inside, he buttoned it down the front for her. Then taking a flowery purple scarf that the maid held out and wrapped it around her neck. He pulled her hair out from the scarf to fix it into place around her shoulder once again. He gave a bemused smile surprised she had even let him help her but is also worried him a little bit. Haruhi was hardly one you could call compliant, this whole situation must have really shaken her up.

"Thanks" Haruhi said quietly. Frowning with worry Hikaru added,

"Well you better hurry, I think Honey and Mori are already in the car waiting on you."


End file.
